Wouldn't it Be Nice
by amelia day
Summary: A series of vignettes from The Darkest Minds. Rated maturely for a reason.


**Disclaimer: **The Darkest Minds belongs to Alexandra Bracken.

For my friend, Amanda + thanks goes to my friend Jessa for finding and fixing my errors :)

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Part One: The Hotel

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It's impossible to say how long I've been awake, memorizing the swirling patterns of the ceiling and counting the rhythmic snores that escape Chub's lips. Zu's cold, but socked, feet press against the bare skin of my ankle as she shifts in the large bed to find a comfier position.

I exhale steadily, blinking slowly, trying to force myself into finding sleep. Morning will be here in just a few short hours and then we'll be back on the road, back in harms way. Sleep would be wise to insure all my senses are at their sharpest, but still my mind refuses to shut down.

Chubs words from earlier ring through my mind. _If you decide to slip out in the middle of the night, know that you probably made the right choice._

I wanted so badly to think he was wrong. To _prove_ him wrong. But the guilt that accompanied his ringing words pooled in the center of my chest tightly, proving that he was probably right.

I swallow thickly, turning to study the way the moon reflects off of Zu's face, making her appear paler than normal in the darkness. Her mouth is slightly ajar and I can feel each of her steady breaths tickling my arm.

_We'll be lucky to make it out of this mess alive without whatever crisis you're bringing to the table._

He's right.

They owe me nothing. They've given me much more than I deserve already. This is my chance to pay them back, to disappear and lighten the burden of their travels. I can find my way to Virginia Beach on my own and if I leave now, with the veil of night still covering me, I can sneak through some abandoned gas stations for food or a map undetected and be long gone by sunrise.

I swallow thickly, slipping out from under Zu's grasp on me and wriggling myself free until my feet touch the plush carpeting below.

I pause until Chub's snores return to their normal pattern, and the light inhale and exhaling of Zu and Liam is detected.

Never having unpacked my things on arrival, it is easy to grab the bag that leans against the bedside table and fling it over my shoulder. My clothes from the day are still drying in the bathroom, so I decide to stay in the red silky thing Zu found for me and my normal clothes will have to dry themselves along the way.

I take a feather-light step towards the bathroom and stop to glance around. Then another, and one more and am about to slide into the bathroom when the sound of a melodic voice causes my body to stiffen and my heart to beat faster.

"Going somewhere?"

My hand clenches tighter around the siding of the door frame and a few words run through my mind, all of the four letter variety.

I weigh my options quickly. If I hadn't had my backpack in tow, I could have pretended I was just going to the bathroom. Should I run? Tell him the truth about Chubs and my conversation? Lie?

I turn on the balls of my feet and meet Liam's eyes for the first time. It's impossible to tell that they are blue in the darkness, but they are still bright, wide with questions and slightly amused.

"I just..." my voice starts, but trails off just as quick. He arches an eyebrow and my shoulders slump. "I couldn't sleep."

"So you're leaving?"

"I figured... maybe I should make sure all my things are packed and ready. Just in case. I left my clothes drying in here an-"

"It's okay if you don't want to tell me the truth, darlin'." he smiles and then after a tense moment pats the spot beside him. I glance around hesitantly. Clear on the other side of the room, near the only window, is Chub's huddled in a corner, not disturbed in the least. Around the corner I know Zu is still dreaming.

I take the steps needed to cross the room and come to sit beside Liam, leaning against the wall for support.

"Couldn't sleep either?" I finally ask, when the silence is too cutting.

He gives his head a quick shake before turning to face me.

"Figured I'd keep watch for a while. Good thing too, we almost had a code Green."

I purse my lips.

"Zu would have been upset, you know."

_I know,_ my mind echos. But she would have gotten over it. They all would have, because when it comes down to it their safety is more important than my feelings. I was not an original member in this alliance and do not wish to pull it apart because some of the members have trouble trusting me.

Well, one.

_With good reason._

"She'd be okay," I finally admit out loud and when he doesn't reply I turn towards him. He wears his expressions clear on his face, that much I know about Liam, but the acute sadness I see in his irises, the way his lips are pulled down into a frown that looks almost painful has my stomach knotting inside of me.

"I would have been upset too," he finally admits.

The words hold more meaning than they ought to. I busy myself by knotting my hands with each other, careful to keep my eyes downcast so that there is no chance of our eyes meeting. My toes curl and uncurl in the carpeting for a few moments.

"Thanks for the socks," I blurt out and as soon as the words leave my mouth, I'm grimacing. Thick, prickling, heat bubbles to my face in embarrassment before I offer lowly, "my uh... my feet were cold."

Liam laughs, running a hand through his shaggy hair before letting it rest on the back of his neck, shyly.

"Oh yeah..._ that_. That, probably wasn't the smoothest thing I've ever done."

A smile tugs at the corner of my lips with his admission.

"You'll have to forgive me, I don't have much practice talking with pretty girls," it's his turn to blush though he disguises any embarrassment with a hearty chuckle.

My mind lingers on the word 'pretty' and a different kind of heat fills my body. I have a ridiculous urge to reach up and let my hair fall loose but only twist my hands together tighter. It's clear that he is waiting for a reply, as he traces invisible patterns through the carpeting below us.

"So... am I just practice then?"

_God._ This is just embarrassing. I'm thankful for the darkness and that we are out of earshot from our other travelers. Otherwise, I am sure I would die from the merciless teasing that we'd surely be subjected to.

_Not us,_ I think. _Him. _There would be no teasing me. No pretense of friendship between Chubs and myself, only a deep scowl of disappointment and annoyance.

The feel of his fingers on my arm causes me to jump, but his grip only tightens, as if to anchor me. When I chance a look up, he's studying me intently. Liam's hand trails down the length of my arm, leaving a path of goosebumps to pebble my skin until his hand dips to hold mine.

It's strong, steady, and oddly warm for the temperature of the room. Or maybe I'm just imagining that last part. Either way, when he tightens his grip, stupid as it might be, I cannot find it in me to fight it.

"No," he answers and gives a shake of his head that speaks to the finality of his words.

I smile and slowly he inhales beside me, his thumb tracing patterns on the back of my hand, still locked with his own. My heart quickens as I give it a little squeeze before settling them down onto my lap.

The feel of his skin so close to mine causes the warmth from my chest to ignite throughout my body; deeper, until its swallowed up my entire belly and shoots down my legs.

He brushes a finger against my thigh before it clasps around my hand tighter, as if it had been by accident and clears his throat.

"Where in the world did you get that dress?" he finally says after a long moment of silence. His words are teasing, but I do not miss the hoarse tone in his voice.

I glance down, for the first time remembering that I'm still clad in the disturbing garment and let out a snort, adjusting the material with my free hand.

"Present from Zu."

"You look like you want to throw it into a fire."

"I can't promise there won't be an unfortunate accident later on," I say, feigning seriousness. He laughs at that, the noise digging its way into my mind and rooting itself there.

Yes, I like that sound a lot.

"I'm sure I could help you come up with a few ideas," he offers lightly before the grin dips slightly and his skin in the moonlight darkens. "Not that it looks bad on you... I just meant because you don't seem to like it. But I, I actually thought it... uh. Shit, I'm rambling."

"Go on," I urge, my lips twisting into a slight smirk. "You actually thought what?"

"I actually thought that it looked quite nice on you," he finishes, slightly more confident with the push. "But then again, you make a basic white shirt look nice so I guess the dress didn't stand a chance, huh?"

Instinctively, my body tilts in closer and the scent of pinewood that clings to his skin invades my nostrils. Our shoulders brush and I'm not sure why it makes me gasp; aren't we already holding hands? Aren't I already treading on very thin ice?

This is stupid. I know it is. One wrong move, one moment of lapsed concentration and I could easily ruin everything.

_This is stupid. I know it is._

But I can't stop my head from resting against his shoulder.

_Idiot._

"Tired?" he asks and he must be looking at me because I can feel his breath across my forehead.

Not especially. But the smart thing would be to go to bed. No, the smart thing would be to head Chub's warning and leave now before things got worse. But I know deep down that I am too weak to do that. I do not want to go. Even the smallest protest from Liam would have been enough to solidify my decision in staying.

It couldn't be a coincidence that he stopped me tonight. Could it? Even if he was awake keeping guard for possible intruders, he didn't need to alert me of his being there. I hadn't seen him. Chances are I wouldn't have. Wasn't that his way of insisting that I stayed?

My head hurts, but still none of this is enough for me to take Liam up on his offer of sleep.

"I'm fine," I say. "Just comfortable."

"Fine by me," he says and I can practically hear the smile in his tone. His head falls down on top of mine with a sigh and he adjusts his fingers around my sweaty palms before relaxing.

"You know, it's was a real piece of luck, you finding Zu the other day."

"You're just saying that because we saved your asses today," I tease half-heartedly and the vibrations of his chuckles rock through both of our bodies.

"Not even a little bit true," he grins but then turns so that I'm facing him. "But, I can't thank you enough for that."

His eyes burn into mine so intently I have the urge to downcast my gaze, but it demands to be met, so I stare back at him with the same level of deepness.

"You don't have to," I admit, my whisper softer than before. "That's what teammates do, right? Help each other out."

"Yeah," he agrees with a measure of pride. His eyes drop over my lips for just half a second, so quickly I am positive he had not meant for me to see. But I had. Instinctively, the pad of my tongue runs across the lower one, wetting it and I watch his Adam's apple quiver as he swallows deeply.

"How do you feel?" I ask, my head still cloudy as the words bubble up. Today was his and Chub's first experience with the white noise and I remember the way my own stomach would churn with nausea for what felt like days after my first encounters with the stuff.

He blinks, as though he doesn't understand why I ask before realization dawns on his features and he smiles genuinely.

"Never felt better," he promises. "But... I don't think a kiss would hurt anything."

His words make my stomach flop and my heart rate flutter. He smiles shyly, as though he can't believe he's said it but is still unwilling to take the words back.

A thousand thoughts run through my mind. _Is he serious or is this a joke? Is he going to laugh if I lean in? What if I laugh, will he be upset? _

"Ruby," he says, breaking through my thoughts. The word sounds so much sweeter under his southern lilt than I've ever heard it sound before. "You look like you've seen a ghost. I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable, that was just my way of letting you know I want to kiss you..."

His words trail off as our joined hands pull apart and I tentatively reach out to rest my hand on his cheek. My fingertips buzz under his hot skin and he inhales sharply when I rub my thumb over it smoothly before leaning in just enough to let him know I feel everything but 'uncomfortable.'

He leans in too, his eyelids hooding the closer we get until finally our lips touch. It's my first kiss. His too, I think. It only lasts half a second before I draw back, unsure of myself. His hand catches my head and he loops his fingers through my hair, drawing me back in before I can get too far.

This time is is longer. Every inch of my body feels alive under his touch and I find myself pressing into it harder as if willing it to never break.

I adjust my position so that I'm not twisting uncomfortably and suddenly my chest is flat against his. He lets out a soft groan, so quiet I almost don't hear it, and I can feel his heart pounding inside of his ribcage.

His free hand comes to rest on my hip timidly, hovering just above my flesh for several seconds before he presses his palm down into me more firmly. His fingers grip me tightly, as if he's afraid to let go.

I hope that he never does.

Our ragged breaths sound heavier in the silence of the hotel and although we try remaining quiet, it's a hard task as occasional moans and sighs of pleasure escape us.

When my hand fists in his thick hair he finally breaks away, tilting his head back until it rests against the wall. I watch his chest rise and fall, trying to silence my own breathing though my body fights to find his again. My hand clenches in frustration and Liam lets out a near-pained moan.

"Easy darlin,'" he breathes out, releasing a shaky chuckle as his eyes flit down. I follow his gaze to where my hand grips his thigh tightly, only inches from where the material of his pants seems to fit tighter.

"A mans only got so much self control."

I pull away as though he was on fire, pressing my hands into my chest with a fierce blush. It takes several minutes to chalk up the courage to glance back at him. He's watching me with the same look in his eyes I feel in my face.

His knees have been drawn up to his chest and he wraps his arms around them, drumming out a vaguely familiar tune before rising to his feet so suddenly I actually jump. He takes a few steps before casting a glance over his shoulder at me, an easy smile pressed to his lips.

"I should probably take a quick shower before we leave anyway," he says. "Can I trust you to play guard for a few minutes?"

I nod dumbly, my voice unwilling to work. His smile extends as he nods in agreement

before the door shuts behind him. A couple seconds later the shower is running and thoughts of water running down the planes of his chest like my fingers just had fill my mind.

Of course I don't mind playing guard. There is no way I could possibly sleep now.

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I'm stutteringpeeta on tumblr :)


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